JUST IN: Man rescues wife from jaws of shark by punching it

A British woman has been mauled by a shark while swimming off the coast of Ascension Island.

The woman, named locally as Frankie Gonslaves, a member of the St Helena government, was attacked near English Bay at around 4pm on Saturday.

She was snorkelling with her husband when the shark attacked her leg and he punched it in order to scare it away, The Times reports.

Gonslaves was taken to Georgetown Hospital on Ascension Island, before being airlifted for treatment in the UK, according to the BBC.
The extent of her injuries is unclear. A witness said the shark also attacked her husband, though it is not known if he was also injured.

St Helena is a British Overseas Territory located 1,150 miles (1,850km) off the west coast of Africa, and incorporates the islands of St Helena, Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha.

The territory is self-governing, though the UK is responsible for providing defence as well as managing its internal security and international relations.

The remote islands, which sit thousands of miles apart, have a combined population of just 6,000 and are linked to the outside world only by boat.

Ascension Island does have a hotel, and is a popular destination for fishing and scuba diving holidays.